All Hallows Evening Prayer for Saturday Evening (April 9, 2022)
One or more candles may be lit.
Bless be God who forgives all our sins
God’s mercy endures forever
EVENING HYMN
Open this link in a new tab to hear Joyous Light of Glorious God from Kent Gustavson’s Mountain Vespers.
Joyous light of glorious God,
heavenly, holy, Jesus Christ,
We have come to the setting of the Sun
and we look to the ev’ning light.
We sing to Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Our voices pure voices together.
O precious God, giver of life,
we sing your praises forever.
Joyous light of glorious God,
heavenly, holy, Jesus Christ,
We have come to the setting of the Sun
and we look to the ev’ning light.
We sing to Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Our voices pure voices together.
O precious God, giver of life,
we sing your praises forever.
PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
Blessed are you, O Lord our God,
the shepherd of Israel,
their pillar of cloud by day,
their pillar of fire by night.
In these forty days you lead us
into the desert of repentance
that in this pilgrimage of prayer
we might learn to be your people once more.
In fasting and service
you bring us back to your heart.
You open our eyes to your presence in the world
and you free our hands to lead others
to the radiant splendour of your mercy.
Be with us in these journey days
for without you we are lost and will perish.
To you alone be dominion and glory,
for ever and ever. Amen.
Open this link in a new tab to hear Psalm 141 from Kent Gustavson's Mountain Vespers.
Let my prayer rise before you as incense,
the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.
O God, I call you; come to me quickly;
Hear my voice when I cry to you.
Let my prayer rise before you as incense,
the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.
Set a watch before my mouth,
and guard the doors of my lips.
Let not my heart incline to any evil thing;
Never occupied in wickedness.
Let my prayer rise before you as incense,
the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.
My eyes are turned to you, O God,
in you I take refuge.
My eyes are turned to you, O God,
Strip me not of my life.
Let my prayer rise before you as incense,
the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.
Silence is kept.
May our prayers come before you, O God, as incense, and may your presence surround and fill us, so that in union with all creation, we might sing your praise and your love in our lives. Amen.
SCRIPTURE
Philippians 2: 5-11 Let Christ be your example of humility
Let Christ himself be your example as to what your attitude should be. For he, who had always been God by nature, did not cling to his prerogatives as God’s equal, but stripped himself of all privilege by consenting to be a slave by nature and being born as mortal man. And, having become man, he humbled himself by living a life of utter obedience, even to the extent of dying, and the death he died was the death of a common criminal. That is why God has now lifted him so high, and has given him the name beyond all names, so that at the name of Jesus “every knee shall bow”, whether in Heaven or earth or under the earth. And that is why, in the end, “every tongue shall confess” that Jesus Christ” is the Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
May your word live in us
and bear much fruit to your glory
HOMILY
Is Jesus the Lord of Your Heart?
Two things stand out in today’s reading from Paul’s letter to the Philippians. One is Jesus’ attitude, an attitude which Paul tells us that we should adopt, an attitude of humility. The other is God’s elevation of Jesus to such an exulted position that every knee must bow to him, and every tongue must confess him to be Lord. They not only stand out in this passage, but they also stand in contrast to each other.
Jesus was not forced to become a human being like ourselves and to suffer a cruel death on the cross for our salvation. He did so voluntarily. He did not consider becoming human was beneath him.
Jesus did not assume the guise of a human like the gods of the Greek and Roman myths were said to do. He actually became a human being. He knew hunger, thirst, cold nights, hot days, happiness, sadness, and even fear. He suffered excruciating pain when he was scourged and nailed to the cross and then suspended in the air by the nails that pinned him to its hard wood. While by nature he was God and equal with God, he chose freely to do these things. He became a slave that we might be free—free from sin and death.
Having humbled himself for a season, Jesus has been raised to the position of Lord of all. Jesus is not just Lord of his church. He is the Lord of all! It is right and proper for not only his disciples to obey him but also all humankind. Jesus is Lord of everybody and everything. The teachings that he has given and the example that he has set are for everyone but especially for his disciples. We do not make him Lord of our lives. He is the Lord of our lives.
We can enthrone Jesus in our hearts, owning his lordship over us. We can enthrone ourselves in his place and deny that lordship. But he is Lord of our lives, nonetheless. In the first instance we are humbly submitting to his rule. We are showing that we know our place. In the second instance we are wittingly or unwittingly rebelling against him. We are rejecting the one who is our rightful Lord.
We are living in a culture which increasingly does not respect authority and in which we are encouraged to put ourselves first before everyone else. The idea of having a lord, a person who is our superior and has authority, control, or power over us, is something to which we are unaccustomed. We are apt to balk at the idea of someone else directing and govern our lives.
It is here where adopting Jesus’ attitude is important. While by nature Jesus was God and was equal with God, he did not consider himself so important that he was not willing to surrender his privileges and become a human being like ourselves. Jesus exemplifies not only humility for us but also obedience.
When we submit to his rule, we are following his example. We do not feel that we are so important that we cannot obey the Son who became human for our sake, suffered agonizing death on the cross for us, and thereby put things right between God and ourselves. We owe a lot to him, more than we can imagine. Obeying Jesus is not just the humblest thing to do but it is also the most grateful thing to do.
As we begin Holy Week and recall Jesus’ institution of the Lord’s Supper as a memorial and proclamation of his saving death and the events that led to his betrayal, arrest, trial, scourging, and crucifixion, let us not forget that the Jesus who hung on the cross is now the Lord of heaven and earth and all that is beneath the earth.
Jesus’ bones are not lying in some forgotten tomb. Jesus is seated at the right hand of the Father in heaven. One day he will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead and his kingdom will have no end.
Jesus is the one above all others to whom we owe our allegiance and loyalty. He is as the Anglican priest, author, and hymn writer Percy Dearmer described him in the hymn, “God Is Love, His the Care,” “the pattern for our duty, showing God in beauty.” We are to love as he loved. We are to humble ourselves as he humbled himself. We are to mirror him in our lives so that all the world may know him. We do so out of love for him and out of the belief and feeling that it is the right thing to do. In so doing, we own Jesus not only as the Lord of our lives but also as the Lord of our hearts.
SONG OF PRAISE
Open this link in a new tab to hear the Magnificat from Kent Gustavson’s Mountain Vespers.
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord.
My spirit rejoices in God my Savior.
For you have looked with favor on your lowly servant;
from this day all generations will call me blessed.
1 You O God have done great things
and holy is your name.
You have mercy on those who fear you
n ev’ry generation.
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord.
My spirit rejoices in God my Savior.
For you have looked with favor on your lowly servant;
from this day all generations will call me blessed.
2 You have shown the strength of your arm,
you have scattered the proud in their conceit.
You have cast the might down from thrones
and have lifted up the lowly.
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord.
My spirit rejoices in God my Savior.
For you have looked with favor on your lowly servant;
from this day all generations will call me blessed.
3 You have filled the hungry with good things,
the rich you have sent away empty.
You have come to the help of your servant Israel
you’ve remembered your promise of mercy.
The promise you made
to Sarah and Abraham.
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord.
My spirit rejoices in God my Savior.
For you have looked with favor on your lowly servant;
from this day all generations will call me blessed.
Glory to you, O Lord our God
With your love and power.
Glory to you, O Lord our God
With your love and power.
Amen
PRAYERS OF THE PEOPLE
With confidence and trust let us pray to the Lord, saying, “Lord, have mercy.”
For the one holy catholic and apostolic Church throughout the world, we pray to you, Lord.
Lord, have mercy.
For the mission of the Church, that in faithful witness it may preach the gospel to the ends of the earth, we pray to you, Lord.
Lord, have mercy.
For those preparing for baptism and for their teachers and sponsors, we pray to you, Lord.
Lord, have mercy.
For peace in the world, that a spirit of respect and reconciliation may grow among nations and peoples, we pray to you, Lord.
Lord, have mercy.
For the poor, the persecuted, the sick, and all who suffer; for refugees, prisoners, and all in danger; that they may be relieved and protected, we pray to you, Lord.
Lord, have mercy
For all whom we have injured or offended, we pray to you, Lord.
Lord, have mercy.
For grace to amend our lives and to further the reign of God, we pray to you, Lord.
Lord, have mercy.
Free Prayer
In silent or spontaneous prayer all bring before God the concerns of the day.
The Collect
Almighty and everliving God, in tender love for all our human race you sent your Son our Saviour Jesus Christ to take our flesh and suffer death upon a cruel cross. May we follow the example of his great humility and share in the glory of his resurrection; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
RESPONSE
Open this link in a new tab to hear Michael Perry’s hymn, “O God Beyond All Praising."
1 O God beyond all praising,
we worship you today
and sing the love amazing
that songs cannot repay;
for we can only wonder
at every gift you send,
at blessings without number
and mercies without end:
we lift our hearts before you
and wait upon your word,
we honour and adore you,
our great and mighty Lord.
2 Then hear, O gracious Saviour,
accept the love we bring,
that we who know your favour
may serve you as our king;
and whether our tomorrows
be filled with good or ill,
we'll triumph through our sorrows
and rise to bless you still:
to marvel at your beauty
and glory in your ways,
and make a joyful duty
our sacrifice of praise.
THE LORD’S PRAYER
And now, as our Saviour has taught us,
we are bold to say,
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come;
thy will be done;
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation;
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
the power, and the glory
for ever and ever.
Amen.
SOLEMN PRAYER OVER THE PEOPLE
Look with compassion, O Lord,
upon this your people;
that rightly observing this holy season
they may learn to know you more fully,
and to serve you with a more perfect will;
through Christ our Lord. Amen.
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